Larchmont Race Week Weekend #1 wrap-up
by Larchmont Yacht Club 18 Jul 2023 11:16 NZST
July 14-16 & 22-23, 2023
LYC Race Weekend - One Designs - Larchmont Race Week Weekend © Doug Reynolds
"Focus, boat speed, and fun, all combined with a little luck," is how Com Crocker attributes his win crewing for his daughter, Eliza, in the Ideal 18 at the first weekend of Larchmont Yacht Club Race Week. The Crocker's came out on top of a 3-way tie by winning the second and, unfortunately, final weekend race on Saturday for the one-designs as wet weather and lack of breeze plagued the Northeast all weekend.
"Good close racing and a three-way tie is the best situation, " Crocker added. "We had hoped for more racing on Sunday and the Race Committee certainly tried! Congratulations to the other teams and sorry we didn't get the chance to duke it out further out there!"
Eliza graduated from Dartmouth this past June and will be moving to Seattle in August, so "I'm grabbing every chance I can to sail with her before she heads west," says her father.
The LYC-based pair frostbite in the Ideal 18 together for eight years, with her skippering the last two before chartering a second boat and both skippered for a couple of seasons before she left for college. In 2018, they sailed together on Chris Sheehan's Warrior Won for the Bermuda Race. "That will always be one of my most cherished sailing memories," reminisces Crocker.
Eliza is now helping with registration and on-the-water safety for the Junior Race Week taking place during the Week before hopping into crew for Matt Kaplan in Team Racing on the second weekend of Race Week.
Com is now traveling to meet another Larcmont local, Peter McWhinnie, and the rest of his In Theory crew to take on the Fastnet Race.
While the entire Northeast was plagued with unfortunate wet weather, it did not wash out the entire weekend of racing for the 125th annual event. Friday night saw 27 boats take on the Execution Rock Race, a 6-mile sprint out and back, starting at 6:30 pm.
Brian McCloskey, Ned Roseberry, Nick DuBois, and Peter Krow have teamed up to create a Larchmont Yacht Club syndicate on a GP42 called Arma. They took the top spot in both the distance race and PHRF racing over the weekend. Luckily, there was enough breeze on Sunday for the PHRF fleet to get off one 3NM race in the rain.
"The Race Committee did a great job getting races off in challenging conditions," says Race Co-Chair and Skipper of the J/88 One Too Many, Andrew Weiss. "We had great racing in PHRF class two and eventually came out on top but battled it out with Iris Vogel and her Deviation crew."
Weiss just returned from a win in the Marblehead-Halifax Race with his Italia 11.98, Christopher Dragon XII. "It was great to be back in the J/88 and to have great competition and fun onshore at Race Week. Looking forward to what the rest of the Week has in store."
Larchmont Race Week continues with Junior Sailing racing Monday-Thursday featuring the Feva North American Championship and Opti Day (Thursday), followed by Team Racing this weekend in the Ideal 18s and Z420s.
Up for grabs the first time is the Larchmont Race Week Club Championship Trophy which will be awarded to the best performing Yacht Club with teams a Team Race event plus at least 2 boats entered in other events (Racer/Cruiser, One Design, Ideal 18 8 fleet race, or paddleboard).
Stay tuned to our Larchmont Yacht Club on Facebook and Instagram for the latest photos and updates.
To register, visit the LYC website: www.larchmontyc.org/race-week.